Iron Sky (2012) review

Iron Sky (2012)

Review by George Elcombe

“In 1945 The Nazis Went To The Moon. In 2018 They Are Coming Back”

Do you like your movies to be fun? Seriously, there are many different types of film out there that tailor for various audiences: the Oscar crowd, the indie lover, the Saturday night movie goer, the blockbuster addict and people who just want to watch something silly and entertaining.

So, if your idea of Nazis on the moon planning to invade the Earth sparks your curiosity then you’re in luck.

In a nutshell this film is a blend of Starship Troopers (1997) and Dr Strangelove (1964), both excellent examples of political and military satire.

Plot: as established in an opening scene set in a classroom, Nazis fled to the dark side of the moon in 1945 where they somehow built a swastika themed base, several spaceships and the biggest war machine in the history of human existence.

Fast forward to 2018 where an astronaut and a model chosen to be the first black man on the moon (called James Washington) arrive to aid the presidents re-election campaign.

They discover the base and the astronaut is quickly taken out and Washington is taken captive. The stereotypical mad Nazi doctor Richter discovers that Washington’s smartphone can process and launch their warship, thus enabling the invasion to begin. Unfortunately the device’s battery dies so Nazi commander Adler and the doctor’s daughter Renate (who is destined to be the mother of Adler’s children) travel to earth to collect another device with similar processing power. Oh yeah, they also take Washington with them who is now white thanks to the mad doctor.

They meet the president’s campaign aid who decides to use them (and Hitler’s propaganda speeches) for the campaign trail, and hilarity ensues. I don’t want to spoil too much, but an invasion begins, there’s lots of dog fighting and the film gets sillier as it goes along until the bitter end when we realise how idiotic the human race is in its pursuit of war and control.

I first heard about this film a few years ago and I was hooked by the idea of Nazis hiding on the moon, and I’m pleased to say that this film had enormous support from the online community through various media channels. The fans and buzz generated an extra £500,000 towards production costs and I have to say that the CGI is impressive for an independent production. I should add that the design of the moon base and the grey lighting sets the mood for 1940’s Nazi Germany perfectly.

As I’ve stated before the films tone is generally silly, but very entertaining. It covers a lot of old Nazi propaganda and how Hitler’s goal was to unite the world in peace. It’s just that he was a genocidal maniac and his methods proved to be wrong. But this is juxtaposed by America’s dominance in the world today, mostly through force to exploit natural resources (the George W Bush is a perfect example of this). Although this film did focus on politics, some may say this needed to be elaborated on to make the film more realistic. Personally, I don’t. The satire is spot on with the Sarah Palin look-a-like being pleased with the fact that all presidents who start a war in their first term get re-elected.

The DVD menu is impressive but slightly spoilish showing the invasion, but the design mixes modern and retro and is aesthetically pleasing. The picture and sound quality are great and I especially enjoyed the 5.1 mix.

Unfortunately there were no special features on the review disk, but I hope they include the various trailers, test footage and a documentary chronically the effect that fans and social media had on the films production.

I have to say it’s a shame this film will only get a 1 day release in UK cinemas, a decision the filmmakers re unhappy about. Many friends want to see this on the big screen so I hope this film makes it into cinemas for random late night screenings.

There are wooden performances, intentionally bad dialogue and copious amounts of cheesy moments, and in that respect this film draws its strengths.

This film has been clearly influenced by Dr Strangelove (1964) and some bits are straight out of Fritz Lang’s classic Metropolis (1927), but is also full of fun stereotypes. If you are after a film that doesn’t take itself too seriously and it’s sole purpose is to entertain then you’re in for a treat.

7 out of 10

If you like this try

Starship Troopers (1997)

Planet Terror (2007)

Dead Snow (2009)